I raised an eyebrow hearing that name. Narcissa? Who’s that? I’ve never heard about her. Is she referring to herself? But she’s not human, is she?

I glanced at Felicia. Judging by the expression on her face, it was clear she shared the same confusion as I had.

“Once upon a time, in a faraway land of the mages, there lived a humble, ordinary girl named Narcissa.” Whitebone began her tale.

Land of the mages? Is she talking about the Magocracy?

“Narcissa was a pitiful, sad girl, having no friends or family that loved her, and she wasn’t even that good at magic. And she had freckles! Dirty, stupid freckles that just wouldn’t go away, no matter how old she grew!” She punched her fist to the air, looking as angry as if she was talking about her parents’ murderer. 

“But, little Narcissa had a hidden talent." She leaned down and whispered in a conspiratorial manner. "The talent in the art of the dark. Especially, necromancy."

"But, she only knew of that fact after a certain—"

She paused, seemingly trying to find the next word she was supposed to say.

"—event. An event that she would rather—"

Another pause. What's going on with her?

Rattlebone, who had sat down when she started her story, stood up, placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Do you want me to take over?"

"N-no." She shook her head. "I'll do it. It's just that… it's been so long since I remember them…"

Alright, this story is definitely about her.

And if she were a human, she would be crying right now.

Come out then. Where's the sad backstory?

She clapped her cheeks, shaking her head before she looked back to her audience.

"Kale, Ferma, Anri — those were the three precious friends she made. They were assigned to the same team, you see, tasked by the grown-ups to infiltrate a neighboring country across the sea. Something about "destabilizing their government". She never understood it that well. She let Kale, the smart, glasses-wearing one, to do all her thinking. She was just happy that she finally had people she could call friends.

"And then, it happened. The day where everything went wrong."

She paused once again, looking down at her bare skeleton feet. Her bony fingers were playing with each other—her nervous tic, most likely.

"The job was supposed to be simple. Guising as bandits, we would attack the carriage of a certain high-ranking noble and assassinate him.

“But then, it all went wrong. We didn’t expect that he would be riding with one of the elite warriors of said neighboring kingdom. And they… were far too powerful for us to handle…”

There was no need for her to continue her tale.

Her friends died, she was the only survivor, and that led to her learning necromancy to revive them.

"The warrior spared only her. It would be better if she had died that day."

You know what? I think it's time for me to speak up.

"So, you're—"

"Is that it? Is that why you learned necromancy? To bring them back?"

Felicia interrupted me before I could speak.

Her face was all serious, frowning with furrowed brows.

"Were you the Necromancer King then?"

The skeleton chuckled, seemingly perking up from her words. “No. That was just a super powerful undead I created myself! Here! Let me show you.”

She walked away from the group, letting down her cloak, revealing her smooth skull head with a ribbon attached to its side.

“Come out! Come out! My beloved Sigfried!”

As if calling a dog, she placed her hands near her mouth and yelled.

And a moment later, it appeared.

A dark, purplish tar formed on the ground around her feet, looking almost similar to the shadows Felicia employed. And then, from that tar, a tall, towering pitch-black armor appeared, wielding a greataxe.

As for who was wearing the armor, all I could see was the two red eyes under the helmet. Everything else was obscured from view.

“There he is! My ultimate undead! Sigfried!” She patted him on his leg, as she was barely tall enough to reach his waist. “Created by amalgamating all sorts of corpses into one, ultimate body, this bad boy could easily rival a Demon Lord in strength! And it used to be even stronger, when I used to feed it living, human flesh!”

The little skeleton grinned while saying such a horrible statement. It was enough to send chills to my entire body.

Glancing beside me, Sherry had tensed up, ready to fight at a moment’s notice. Myrilla as well, as the grip on her staff had tightened considerably.

As for Felicia…

“That’s…” The ex-necromancer pointed towards the armor, her finger shaking, her jaw wide open. “That’s an Abomination, isn’t it? You wrote about it in your book! I’ve tried making one myself but I never really managed to do it!”

Whitebone’s mouth opened as well, seemingly surprised by Felicia’s statement. “Eh?” Her body leaned forward. “My book?”

“Yes! Your book! It was yours, wasn’t it?” Felicia replied, half-shouting, as she leaned forward as well. “Stored in the forbidden section of the academy in Mira? The Book of Necromancy. It was that book that taught me the art!”

“..Aahhh!” The little skeleton clapped her hands. “That book! That wasn’t me! I wasn’t the one who wrote that book! That was Mira!”

Felicia’s eyes widened. “M-Mira?! You mean, Mira the Legendary Mage? The founder of the Magocracy?!”

“Yes! Her!” The skeleton smiled back, her pearly white teeth gleaming under the moonlight. “Don’t you know? She’s the mother of human necromantic arts! She stole the knowledge from Rattlebone and then translated it to something a human can use!”

Well, that is some revelation! The great heroine mage is actually an evil necromancer in secret!

…Hold on, wasn’t that what that book made by the Church says? The one that I read at Sigil, inside the Grand Priestess’ temple library? And I remember Nicole saying the same thing one time.

And what do you know? They’re actually right all this time.

That makes sense. Necromancy wasn’t banned until the incident with the Necromancer King. So back in the old days, Mira and her disciples might just be studying it willy-nilly.

…Heh. How ironic. Ilymhrra hated necromancy yet her pupil secretly studied it without her knowing.

I glanced at Myrilla. She replied with a nod. Miss Skeleton wasn’t lying then.

Felicia sat there speechless. It took her some time until she regained her voice, time that was filled only by silence, and the sound of the night wind blowing from the east.

"Then, was it you who made the book incomplete?" Felicia narrowed her eyes.

"No. Wasn't me." The skeleton smiled. "They must have done it. Those crooked mages in their tall tower. 

“But I wonder though.” She continued, walking a few steps towards Felicia with her hands behind her. “Why keep it in the library? Don’t you think they should’ve hidden it in a better place, if they really want people to not study necromancy?”

“They…” Felicia paused, her tone unsure. “They might just allow the book to be there for research purposes…”

The skeleton giggled. “Surely, you don’t believe that, Miss Felicia?! You’re a really smart woman!"

Felicia bit her lip, shifting her legs around nervously.

She was right. There was only one explanation that made sense. To explain all of this.

"They intentionally put it there. To… to scout out for potential necromancers. They have been hoarding necromancers in secret all this time, away from the public eye…"

"Correct!" The skeleton clapped.

"But I wasn't—"

She wasn't chosen.

Instead of bringing her in, they hunted her down. Sent elite assassins at her.

"It's your ambition, Miss Felicia! You're too ambitious for them! That's why they can't let you be a necromancer! They don't want another me! Tee hee!"

"Ambition?"

She had a point.

Even if they had offered, she would never obey their will. She would just betray them later, working from the inside to destroy their precious nation.

"Hold on, you know about my past?!"

"Oh no!" She giggled. "I just guess that since you're a necromancer, you must have some sort of a dark, terrible backstory to your life! We all do here!"

Silence. Felicia no longer had anything to say.

"Well, enough about me!" She clapped her hands. "You can go, Sigfried."

The Abomination left the scene, disappearing into the black tar that he came out from.

"Your turn, Rattlebone!"

She sat down beside him, waving her hand towards Felicia, who was still watching her with an open jaw.

"Oh please, why are you so surprised?” Sherry interrupted. “Those mages… they are all bad guys. Even their Founder. All the more reason to beat them all up.”

Heh, it seems Sherry doesn’t really have an attachment to the Magocracy like Felicia does. Maybe she secretly idolizes Mira all this time.

Felicia didn’t reply. She merely stared at Rattlebone, who now had switched places with Whitebone, standing in the middle of our circle.

“Hmm, where should I begin?” The skeleton tapped his bony chin with his finger. “From my meeting with Mira or even further back?”

“You met Mira?!” Felicia spoke.

“Oh yes, I did.” He grinned. “She and the rest of the Hero party. I fought them. Threw a bunch of undead abominations at them. I even did something quite cruel and petty to the little mage. So I was really, really surprised that she ended up being a champion of necromancy.”

Something quite cruel and petty? I raised an eyebrow. Is this why Ilymhrra hates necromancy so much, calling it “disgusting” and all?

“Hey, what do you mean by ‘cruel and petty’?” I asked.

He paused, scratching his bald bone head this time.

Looking at me with an apologetic expression, he answered, “I recreated the people she loved from her destroyed town. As zombies.”

…Well, that explains it.

“So why did you attack them in the first place?” I continued. “Did you side with the Demon God back then?”

“Side?” He burst into a laugh. “I had no choice! He was the Demon God! He had the ability to control the entire demon race! Program them to be on his side!”

 I glanced at Myrilla. That's what she said about the demons one thousand years ago. That they weren’t fighting the humans out of their own volition.

“And this is why I come to you all! A new Demon God is already here and who knows what he would do with that power!”

Now this revelation took us all by surprise.

Or not. Xaela already told us that a new Demon God would soon come. We just didn’t expect it would be this soon.

“What?!” Myrilla, who had been silent all this time, actually spoke up. “You’re… you’re not lying, aren’t you?”

“Why, you should know, Mindreader Myrilla.” He cackled, smiling at her. “Read my brain. Or my bones, rather, hehheh.”

“But.” He turned back to face the rest of us. “I’ll tell you, non-mindreaders, about it.” 

…Well, out of it! Don’t just stand there for dramatic effect!

“You see.” He raised a finger. “At the far south of this continent, there’s a certain demon that has been gaining considerable power recently. Apparently he used to be just a weak little dire rabbit, until he rapidly evolved, far beyond what is normally considered possible. And now, he has his own little nation, with several Demon Lords already joining under his banner.

“Now, before you open your mouths to ask your questions, let me finish. No, it’s not strange at all that this is the first time you’ve heard of it. Mindreader Myrilla, please, tell them how the southern region of the Demon Continent is.”

Our eyes switched towards the demoness in an instant.

“Miasma.” She answered. “All that is there is miasma. A thousand years was still not enough to dissipate the effect of the Heroes’ battle with the Demon God. As such, that place is completely uninhabitable. With the only exception being some horrors that certainly could not construct their own civilization.” She looked at Rattlebone. “Which is why I wish to question your statement. But I can tell—you are not lying.”

“Correct!” He laughed. “I am indeed, not lying. For you see, the miasma isn’t really as terrible as you say. All this time, a number of demons had made the region their enclaves, away from the eyes of the world.”

Myrilla’s expression was one of skepticism. But she did not say anything. She merely waited until he resumed his speech.

“And amongst those demons he ruled. He settled their conflicts, gave them safety, and united them under a single banner. His.” He chuckled. “Just like the Demon God of old.”

“...Hold on.” I interrupted him. “How do you know all of this? Did you meet him in person?”

“Oh nonononono!” He waved his hands. “Not in my dreams. I don’t wish to be controlled anymore! Though, from the people I talked with, he seemed to be an affable sort, far different from the old Demon God. Now that one, hoo boy, he had a lot of hate inside his little heart.”

So I guess that’s where Isolde is going. Though I think she’s supposed to wait until the actual hero pops out. She’s just his companion after all.

Heh, I have no idea why the Heavenly Dragon chose such an erratic woman to be part of the new hero’s entourage.

"So?" Felicia spoke. "What does this have to do with me going back to necromancy?"

…That’s right. I don't see why those two are related. It's nice to know but it's not like we have anything to do with it. If I can't even defeat a Demon Lord, I sure as hell can't win against a Demon God.

"Because, my good female friend, there's a storm coming. And you need all the power you can get. Especially since you are going to face Mira herself."

"...Wait, Mira?" I interrupted. "What do you mean 'facing her'? She's…"

My heart skipped a beat.

"Oh no…"

"She's a necromancer. Which means she can very well still be—"

"Alive and well. Yes." Rattlebone answered. "She had transferred her soul into a fresh body."

Felicia’s eyes widened.

"You—you can do that? Soul Transfer? I… I always failed whenever I tried to do it. The subject would just die."

"Oh yes, it's quite difficult. But certainly doable."

"Is that how you're walking around as skeletons now?" She asked.

"Not quite." His jaws rattled. "I… Ah… did something quite a bit different. Too long to explain. But she did that, yes." He gestured towards Whitebone.

"Teehee, I only did it to escape those meanies!" The little skeleton giggled.

"Those meanies?" Felicia raised her eyebrows. "You mean the Magocracy and the Church? They worked together to beat you, right?"

"That they did." The skeleton brought her legs closer to her chest. "And just when I was about to win too…"

"Why did you want to conquer the Magocracy?" Felicia was now in full interrogation mode. "Was it revenge? For how your parents and peers treated you? They used to look down on you for being an untalented mage, didn't they?"

"No reason! I just thought it'd be interesting, that’s all!"

Felicia opened her mouth, seemingly ready to ask her further. But no voice came out.

Yeah, I think we're talking to a psychopathic kid right now. Maybe her mind broke when her friends died.

"Ehem, back to Mira, if you would, gentleman and gentleladies." Rattlebone coughed, drawing our attention back to him. 

“You may not know this but the Magocracy had resurrected Mira, using a necromantic ritual that sucked dry the leyline of the Southwest Continent. You know about it, don’t you, Ex-Necromancer Felicia? You tried to do the same back at the Holy Continent. To open the Gate and drag the souls of the dead back to the living world.”

“I-I did. But I… I failed…” She looked down. “I didn’t get to… grant their wish…”

Berault’s wish to see his dead wife again… She never managed to fulfill it… She can only create an autonomous puppet that mimics her…

And Diona… the ghost she made a pact with… Well, I suppose that one got her revenge, since she did kill the king… Still, Felicia didn’t like that she failed to keep her from being exorcized… even though technically, that means her soul should be resting in peace…

And of course… Leyla… she who shouldn’t have died in the first place…

If Felicia could revive her, I’m sure she would.

“You’ve made a grave mistake, Miss Felicia.” Whitebone giggled. “You could never have opened the Gate on your own. The amount of mana it requires is too much for a single, wandering necromancer to provide. You said that book was incomplete. That meant they left out the most important part, just to trick curious necromancers like you.”

Felicia could not reply to that comment. She simply gave her an upset glare. She knew it was the truth. But she didn’t have to spell it out so candidly in front of her face like that.

“Now,” Rattlebone spoke again. “I’m not saying you should try it again. Nononono. Let the dead stay dead I say. But, what I want you to learn is the other aspects of necromancy. Something that you could really use in combat. And, most importantly, something that could counter whatever Mira had in store.”

Felicia paused. She eyed him up and down, almost as if she was searching for a hint whether she should accept his offer or not.

And then, she looked at me, clearly wanting my opinion on the matter.

“I’d say take it. You have nothing to lose by knowing more stuff."

Sherry gave her opinion first, even though Felicia wasn't really asking for hers.

"She's right." I followed. "I don't think it'd do you any harm learning more about the magic. Like I said, I had nothing against necromancy."

"Do whatever you wish." Myrilla was the last to answer, with her classic stern look. "You're wise enough to know what you must do."

All three of us agreed she should take his offer.

And so she did.

"Fine. I'll learn from you. But I don't have time to be your apprentice. Just give me a book or two."

"Of course! Yes! A book! I've written one just for this occasion!"

"And one more thing." Felicia interrupted. "You still have not told us why you want to help us."

The skeleton paused for a second, before answering, "Let’s just say that I don't like the Goddess either."

My eyes widened. What did he just say?!

"Oh yes, I know about her. And about you, Unchained One." He glanced at me. "And you are the best bet we have to take her down. You and your descendants."

"...You." Myrilla interrupted, standing up. "I can't read your thoughts anymore. What are you doing? What are you trying to hide?"

The skeleton grinned towards her. "Relax, Mindreader Myrilla. I just don't want you to pry into my past. No. My past is my own. I'm not telling it to anyone."

His past…

He must have something to do with the Ancients. No one can remember the Goddess without permission from the Heavenly Dragon

Even now, Sherry looked around confused, not knowing what we're talking about. I can explain it to her later but she'll just forget about it the next day.

"Are you an Administrator?" I asked him.

"Not answering."

"Or even… an Ancient. Survived for so long due to necromancy. Made himself immortal, just like you said."

"Lalalala not hearing your words, Stubborn Hugo."

I sighed. "Fine. Just give Felicia her book. Or you could come with us." I suggested. "We could use the help of a Demon Lord like you." I smiled.

"Oh no! I'm sitting out of this one!" He waved his hands. "You guys are on your own! I'm just giving a little help, that’s all! Gahahahaha!" He laughed.

***

Afterwards, he took out a thick, leather-bound tome out of his Dimensional Storage and gave it to Felicia. How he could do the former without a staff, I had no idea. His bones probably worked as a magical focus. Or he was just that good of a mage.

Then, we said our goodbyes, as the duo would be going to the south after this. I was about to tell them about the Izurds but I stopped myself. I couldn't really trust them with that information. Whitebone, or Narcissa, was a psycho, and Rattlebone was way too shady of a character. Ironic, since after our talk, my view on him had changed 180 degrees.

Still, Felicia said the book was just that, an ordinary book. No traces of magic so it wasn't cursed.

Let's just hope the contents were actually truthful, unlike Mira's book.

Felicia saved the reading for later though as we had to reunite with the others, who had fled the town.

With the sun rising on the horizon (we really talked for that long, huh?), we departed.

The last we saw the two skeletons were them waving their hands, wishing us well before disappearing down the hill.

I had a hunch we would see them again one day.